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The black stallion let his wings droop to the ground, unfolding gracefully so the tips of his primaries created soft blemishes in the snow. The fabric of his wings encased the small, frost-crowned plant, shielding it with attentive care from the bitter winds of early spring. He did not appear to contemplate her question for long, but responded with perhaps the slightest amount of wistfulness in his drawling tone. “Home is many miles north in a place known as Evendim. I would return immediately if not for the fact that a group of thugs who would have my head await me there,” he fell into a soft, sophisticated accent and tipped his chin, looking down his nose at the mare, “but I shan't bore you with the details, my dear.” He cocked his head and threw her a sardonic smile. It wasn’t as if Helovia wasn’t good enough for him, but there truly was no place that could be regarded as parallel to his true home.
Weak rays of sun shone through the thin, interwoven blanket of clouds, scattering fractions of golden light across the surface of Murdock’s wings and reflecting upon the black sheen of his neck. It offered just the feeblest amount of warmth against the icy breeze, but the stallion drew back a wing so the seedling might benefit from the caress of sunlight. His charcoal hooves sunk into the snow as he shifted, face betraying curiosity as Chernobyl’s voice reached him. He nodded at her compliment and grinned crookedly, “that’s what all the doctors say” he admitted unabashedly, though most of them were referring to his mind rather than physical appearance. The mare who at first had seemed guarded and cautious appeared to be opening up to him, exposing a playful smile like the blossoming of a vigilant flower.
It was true that, borne by his stalwart wings and aberrant mind, he had seen much of the world; at least much which lay in the expanse of earth between Helovia and his birth land. He was a seasoned explorer and a keen fighter, even if his strong legs were the only thing stable about him. The idea that what she said was almost an invitation, an implication that he could see more of the world; a promise that one day, when he was long forgotten, he could return to the place he would always call home, was an uplifting realization. "An explorer, you say? Hmm, I happen to know one quite well..." he mused, a mischievous glint in his eye as he calmly swayed a few steps closer to her "and I'm sure he would be delighted to accompany you" he added with a wink.
He shifted his wings against his slender sides, feathers creating the soft sound of silk unfurling as they moved against his hide. “Where would one such as yourself desire to explore? Anywhere? Everywhere?” he asked animatedly, his face lightening as he imagined the lands beyond Helovia; places untouched by the hooves of equines and unseen by the eyes of any other beasts. He wondered how she would get away with touring the world of Loorien with a Pegasus, what with her being a member of the Basin. Perhaps they would have to move about in the shadows, as a pair of sleuths would when committing a crime. He hated to think that anyone would find the mingling of species a crime, but unfortunately he knew that some held to those views.
"Speak"
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